My Story
Welcome! I am Dr. Randi Brown, owner and founder of Comprehensive Academic Coaching Solutions (CACS). I have over 33 years of experience working with children and their families in education ranging in age from the very young (under 5) to graduate school (over 21) as a School Psychologist/School Neuropsychologist. I earned my Doctorate in School Psychology from Yeshiva University in 1994 and then returned to school in 2016 to earn my Post-Doctoral certification in the area of School Neuropsychology, becoming a Diplomate of the American Board of School Neuropsychologists (ABSNP). I served as an Adjunct Professor for both undergraduate and graduate studies in the areas of psychology and education online for the University of Phoenix (UOP) and in person at the Graduate School of Education at Pace University in Pleasantville, New York. I have received recognition of my work both at the state level, being the recipient of the Frank Plumeau School Practitioner of the Year in 2005 from the New York Association of School Psychologists (NYASP), and nationally by representing New York the same year for the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) School Psychologist of the Year award. I was profiled by my local ABC affiliate (WABC Eyewitness News in New York) for the High School groups I ran on Test Anxiety. I am published, having articles on various topics within the industry and in local newspapers, in addition to contributing to an article on helping children organize for Real Simple magazine. Lastly, I authored the guide “Recognizing and Treating Anxiety in Teens”, which is currently available for purchase on this site.
Working in the field of school psychology for over 33 years has afforded me the unique insight into how educational trends and patterns have changed over time. The pressures our children face today are very different even from a few years ago, and what is expected of them as students hasn’t really caught up with these expectations. It has been my experience that formalized classes to teach important skills like time management, how to study and organizing themselves just don’t exist in the majority of elementary and secondary schools. Kids are just expected to just “know” how to do them, but in reality students need to be taught these skills. Even those that are able to catch on quickly, having concrete tools to use certainly makes learning more efficient.
I have customized and created skills and routines for dozens and dozens of children, and when followed and coached with consistency, their school performances improved. I’ve been fortunate that several of the families I’ve worked with told their friends, and so on. Before I knew it, I was soon seeing children throughout the tri-state area (NY, NJ, and CT) and remotely to Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, and as far south as Florida.
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